Cleaning A Clam

For the past three weeks I have spent my afternoons carefully removing the matrix that remains on the clamshell.  Before transporting the shell to the museum we coated it with Butvar to help hold the various pieces in place.  Consequently the Butvar is also being removed. 

The shells of the Oysters that attached themselves to the clam shell are numerous and of various sizes.  Their shells are thin and fragile necessitating small tools and patients. 

Here are two photos.  The top one is early in the cleaning process and the bottom is the same area after cleaning.

One of the fun parts of this process is I am able to talk with our visitors about what I am doing and what is going on at the museum.  I will talk about them in future blogs.

I hope to be finished with cleaning this clam in a couple more weeks.  Lloyd will make a presentable frame for it and we can hang it on the wall as one of the new exhibits.

Below are photos showing the progress from week to week.